I have an idea for a panel discussion on digital painting. It will not be held in a sleek museum but in an abandoned garage or squat somewhere. (Obviously somewhere outside of Greater New York.) Solar panels and batteries will be used to power the PCs and laptops of the panelists, as well as a projector. Use of phones or pads will be discouraged without a bluetooth drawing tablet for serious work. The event will not be "streamed."
The topic will be digital presets of paint programs, the philosophical baggage of "brushes" and the idea of the "canvas" or "neutral surface." Examples will be projected, and the panelists will demonstrate the relative merits of particular techniques. Not for technique's sake, but as a catalog of signifiers and the creation of chains of meaning out of same. Is this "brush stroke" skeumorphic? Does that matter? Is this one a gimmick? Does it matter if the software is "proprietary"? How does printing the image change it?
One ironclad rule: if any panelist uses the word "market" he or she will be excused and sent home.